The Saint Leo men's soccer team (1-0) kicked off the 2009 season in impressive fashion, shutting out the Clearwater Christian Cougars (0-1), 7-0 Thursday evening from University Field.
Glenn got the Lions off of the right foot, heading the ball past the Cougars' keeper less than three minutes into the game. The game remained scoreless over the next 40 minutes as each team fought off early season cobwebs. However, with under two minutes remaining in the first half, Huertas began to heat up. He buried the first of his three goals on the night to increase the lead to 2-0 before the halftime horn.
At the beginning of the second half, Nogueira ignited what became a five-goal offensive outburst by heading a ball past the outstretched arms of the CCC keeper. Soon after, Huertas took advantage of a foul in the box by the Cougars, blasting the ball to the lower-right corner of the net to increase the Lions' lead to 4-0. He wasted no time in collecting his third goal of the night, striking the back of the net just two minutes later.
With the score 5-0, Menor's hustle finally paid off when he connected on a brilliant shot from just inside the 18-yard box, burying the ball in the right side of the net. 15 minutes later, Tatum joined Menor by tallying the first goal of his career with six minutes to play in the contest.
On the defensive end, the Lions allowed only one shot the entire game while posting 18 of their own. 26 Lions made an appearance in the game, as they totaled the most goals in a game since an 8-1 decision over Southeastern (10/21/08).
Lions' keeper Erik Mozzo collected the first win of his Saint Leo career, posting one save in 75 minutes worth of action.
Saint Leo looks to continue their winning ways on Saturday, August 29 as they welcome North Georgia College to the friendly confines of University Field. Kickoff is set for 7:00 pm.